Mets Designate Bobby Abreu For Assignment

The Mets have designated veteran outfielder Bobby Abreu for assignment, the club announced. Kirk Nieuwenhuiswill take spot on the active roster, according to the Mets.

Abreu, 40, has a .238/.331/.336 triple slash through 142 plate appearances on the year, which rates just below league average. After a hot start to the year (.913 OPS in May), Abreu has cooled considerably and seen his playing time dissipate. Though his final production fell just below replacement level, that is no mean feat for a man of Abreu’s age.

It remains to be seen whether Abreu will seek to continue his playing career, but it would not be surprising to see a club add him on a minor league deal to provide some depth. Indeed, he tells Anthony DiComo of MLB.com (Twitter link) that he is not yet ready to retire and will keep his options open for the time being.

About time the Mets aren’t going anywhere. Play the young guys and see what you’ve got for next year. Chris Young should be next we know what he is. Tejada is young but we know what he is too (bench player – late inn defense) Just play Flores give him everyday playing time, we need to see what he is, if your worried about his glove (which has been good enough so far range wise)then sub in Tejada in 8th or 9th inn. You can’t hit when you get in the game every 3-4 or even every other game (what they’re doing now) It has to be every game or it’s not fair to each player. Play Nieuwenhuis or Eric Young in LF for the rest of the year. If next year is the “year” as they say it’s going to be then we need to know who can start and which ones are good enough to be on the bench! If Flores hits and is an above average at SS then your priority will be to trade or sign an OF. Or by Flores hitting all you do is increase his trade value and maybe include him in a trade for a SS or OF.

I think Abreu was overused during his hot stretch, which came during a time when the Mets really weren’t getting a lot out of their offense in general, let alone from their outfield. I don’t really blame TC for doing that, but I would say that that’s likely why he declined so badly after May. Regardless of why he declined, it was nice to see him swing the bat well again, if only for a limited time.